Aurora

Aurora, Colorado 

In the American state of Colorado's Arapahoe, Adams, and Douglas counties is the home rule municipality of Aurora. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 386,261 people, of whom 336,035 lived in Arapahoe County, 47,720 in Adams County, and 2,506 in Douglas County. The third-most populous city in Colorado and the 51st-most populous city nationwide is Aurora. Aurora is a prominent city in the Front Range Urban Corridor and a key city in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). 

History 

The Arapaho, Cheyenne, Nu-agha-tv-p (Ute), and O'eti 'akówi (Sioux) tribes inhabited the area that is now Aurora before European settlers arrived. The village of Fletcher, which became Aurora in the 1880s, got its name from Denver entrepreneur Donald Fletcher, who spotted a real estate opportunity there. He and his companions established a stakeout four square miles (10 km2) east of Denver, but during the Silver Crash of 1893, both the community and Colorado suffered greatly. Fletcher then left town, leaving the neighborhood with a hefty water debt. After one of the town's subdivisions, Aurora, was chosen as the new name by the locals in 1907. Aurora slowly grew in Denver's shadow, becoming the nation's fastest-growing metropolis in the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a result, Aurora, which is made up of numerous subdivisions, bears the name of one of the initial development plats from which it originated. 

Recent population growth in Aurora has prompted initiatives for co-equal status with its larger neighbor. Dennis Champine, a former mayor, famously quipped that the region might one day be referred to as the "Aurora/Denver Metropolitan Area." In fact, Aurora now has more acreage than Denver did at the time of the 2000 Census, although Denver is more densely populated. However, the absence of a sizable, historically significant central business center in the city hinders such initiatives significantly. The small amount of multi-story buildings in Aurora is proof that the city has a predominantly suburban character. 

Since the turn of the 20th century, Aurora has had a sizable military presence. Army General Hospital #21 (later known as Fitzsimons Army Hospital) was founded in 1918. In 1941, the U.S. government expanded and improved the hospital's infrastructure in time to provide care for World War II soldiers who had been injured. In 1938, the Lowry Air Force Base, which is on the border of Denver and Aurora, was established. After eventually closing in 1994, it was rebuilt as a master-planned town with housing, businesses, and educational facilities. The Army Air Corps constructed Buckley Field in 1942. Since then, it has through several renaming processes, including Naval Air Station, Buckley Air National Guard Base, Buckley Air Force Base, and Buckley Space Force Base. The major employment in Aurora is the base, which serves as the location of the Buckley Garrison and the 140th Wing Colorado Air National Guard. 

In 1923, President Warren G. Harding and in 1936, President Franklin D. Roosevelt both paid a visit to Fitzsimons Army Hospital. John Kerry, a 2004 Democratic candidate for president, was born there in 1943. During the fall of 1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower spent seven weeks at Fitzsimons recovering from a heart attack. The building, which was decommissioned in 1999, is a part of the Fitzsimons Life Science District and the Anschutz Medical Campus of the University of Colorado Denver. The Children's Hospital and the University of Colorado Hospital, which relocated from Denver to Aurora in 2007 are also part of the Anschutz Medical Campus. At the location, a research and treatment facility for carbon-ion radiation has been proposed. When these facilities are fully operational, 32,000 people will work there. 

The first female mayor of a city with a population of over 60,000 people in the United States was Norma O. Walker in 1965. 

The criminal drama Over the Edge, a classic coming-of-age movie that has been dubbed Denver's "signature film," was shot in Aurora in 1978. 

It was announced in 1979 that a science fiction theme park based on the fantasy novel Lord of Light would be constructed in Aurora using the sets from a $50 million movie. However, the project was never finished because of legal issues. The "Canadian Caper," which involved the exfiltration of six American diplomats held prisoner by the Iranian hostage crisis, was covered up by the script of the unproduced film project that had been renamed Argo. 

Pope John Paul II's papal service for the eighth World Youth Day took place in Cherry Creek State Park on the city's southwest outskirts in 1993. It was attended by an estimated 500,000 people. 

Three counties make up Aurora, which is located a distance from each county's administrative center. Midway through the 1990s, the idea of a combined city and county government, similar to those in other parts of Colorado (Denver and Broomfield), was examined. City voters rejected the idea, but the matter was brought up again in 2006. 

In 2003, Aurora Sports Park debuted. Due to its outstanding efforts to promote and facilitate sports, Aurora was named Colorado's "Sportstown" for the 50th Anniversary of Sports Illustrated magazine in 2004. More than 30 regional and national sporting events are drawn to Aurora each year, including the 220-acre (0.89 km2) The range of professional athletes from Aurora also reflects the city's active population. The International Basketball League's Aurora Cavalry, Aurora's first semi-pro sports team, started competing in 2006 but disbanded by the end of the season due to financial difficulties. 

The National Civic League named Aurora an All-America City in 2008. 

After the Prairie Waters Project was completed in 2010, Aurora became one of the first American cities to profit from siphoning water from beneath a riverbed, pioneering the use of bank filtration in the country. 

A consulate for the Republic of El Salvador was established in Aurora in 2017 to serve the states of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming. 

Geography 

The signage at the municipal limits state that Aurora's official elevation is 5,471 feet (1,668 m). But the city spans a nearly 1,000-foot elevation difference (300 m). The city's northwest corner has the lowest elevation of 5,285 feet (1,611 m), and its extreme southern boundary in Douglas County is close to the intersection of Inspiration and Gartrell roads, where the maximum elevation of 6,229 feet (1,899 m) is located. 

The city had a total area of 102,851 acres (416.223 km2) at the time of the 2020 United States Census, including 368 acres (1.489 km2) of water. The city is the 56th largest city in the United States by land area and is roughly 5% larger than its neighbor Denver. 

Climate 

The climate in Aurora is semi-arid (Köppen climatic classification BSk), with four distinct seasons and annual average precipitation of only a few inches. A dozen tornado warnings are often issued in Aurora each year during the tornado season, which lasts from April to July. Aurora also experiences summers that range from mild to hot, with typically low humidity and frequent afternoon thunderstorms. Although a tornado does occasionally touch down, they are usually weak and brief. Compared to Denver, to the west, Aurora residents frequently hear the tornado sirens go off much more times. East of I-25, where tornado alley starts, is where the entire city of Aurora is situated.  

Hailstorms that are occasionally 1-2'+ deep and normal hailstorms are frequent throughout these months. With an average high temperature of 89 °F (32 °C) and low temperature of 57 °F (14 °C), July is the warmest month of the year. Winters can be moderate or occasionally bitterly cold, with intervals of sunshine and snow, strong winds, and extremely low temperatures alternately occurring. With an average high of 43 °F (6 °C) and an average low of 17 °F (8 °C), December is the coldest month of the year. Although snow has occurred as early as September 4 and as late as June 5, the average first snowfall and average last snowfall in the Aurora area occur in late October and late April, respectively. Typically, the region's deciduous trees are naked from mid-October until late-April. 

Population 

Colorado's Adams County and Arapahoe County contain the city of Aurora. It is the third-largest city in Colorado and the 48th-largest city in the country with a projected population of 404,615 in 2023. The population of Aurora has grown by 4.75% from the most recent census, which showed a population of 386,261 in 2020, and is now rising at a pace of 1.54% annually. The population of Aurora, which spans more than 155 miles, is 2,623 persons per square mile. 

With a 13.12% poverty rate, the average family income in Aurora is $82,338. The median monthly cost of rent in recent years has been, and the median value of a home is. In Aurora, the median age is 34.8 years, with 33.9 years for men and 36 years for women. 

Top 2 News Websites 

Sentinel Colorado 

For breaking news, business, sports, health, arts & entertainment, politics, education, editorial, jobs, real estate, and more in Aurora City and Colorado, turn to Sentinel Colorado. 

Denver7 

Denver7 news brings you breaking and developing news, weather, traffic and sports coverage from the Aurora, Colorado and across Colorado. 

Government 

The city of Aurora has a council-manager form of government, which means that the city manager oversees daily operations while receiving general direction from the city council. Ten council members plus a mayor make up the Aurora City Council. The other four are chosen at large. Six members are chosen from districts. The city as a whole elect the mayor. The mayor of Aurora plays a mostly ceremonial function, but as the chairman of the city council, he or she does directly influence policy decisions. Although the council is nonpartisan, the parties of its members are mentioned below for your information. 

The Aurora Police Department, one of only 10 law enforcement organizations in Colorado to hold accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, the Aurora Fire Department, which holds accreditation from the Commission on Fire Accreditation International, and a dispatch call center for public safety communications all work to protect this full-service city. A wide range of crime infractions are handled by the Aurora Municipal Courts, and the Aurora Detention Center is a 72-hour adult detention facility. 

Current City Mayor 

Mike Coffman, the mayor of Aurora, has devoted his professional life to serving as an American patriot and improving Aurora. 

Coffman was raised in Aurora, attended Aurora Public Schools, and received a G.I. Bill degree from the University of Colorado. He finished the Senior Executive Program for State and Local Government at the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government in 1995. 

Coffman spent 21 years in total serving in the U.S. Marine Corps, the Army, the Army Reserve, and the Marine Corps. Coffman resigned from his position as State Treasurer in 2005 to serve as a civil affairs officer in the Iraq War, and he took an unpaid leave of absence in 1990 to serve as a Marine Corps light armored infantry officer in the first Gulf War. 

Coffman has contributed to the community he now governs over the years by serving on local boards and in charitable groups. Formerly running a small business, Coffman spent 17 years as a partner in the 1983-founded property management company based in Aurora. 

Since 1989, Coffman has worked in government, holding positions in the Colorado State House of Representatives, Colorado State Senate, and United States House of Representatives. He has also served as Colorado State Treasurer and Secretary of State. 

Coffman was chosen in November 2019 to lead Aurora as mayor. 

Community/Intergovernmental Participation: Fitzsimons Redevelopment Authority, High Line Canal Working Group, Aurora Economic Development Council, Adams County Economic Development (alternative), and Denver Regional Council of Governments.